Is improvement work on this forum/website still ongoing?

[Ian P]

On Ian P Said:

… only to have Chrome close all windows and close itself when I hit ‘Submit’.

…

 

That’s Submission in the sense that Wrestlers use the word, Ian

🙂

MichaelG.

[Ian P]

On Ian P Said:

…. or clear the cache, or try a different browser but it is all irrelevant as none of those fixes are needed for other websites.

And yet Firefox, and probably most other browsers, while allowing you to configure to flush cache and cookies on exit also allow you to create exceptions for specific sites. Which seems to suggest that the need to retain certain personal settings is not uncommon and is probably necessary for some sites. For example, how else would you stay logged in here if you delete the login cookie after every session (same for the old site).

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi, well this log in situation seems to be getting worse, as I couldn’t get logged in at all last evening/night, and it’s taken me several attempts this morning, almost to the point of never trying again, and what with bags full of those stupid verification squares to wade through, it’s beginning to waste my time.

Regards Nick.

[KEITH BEAUMONTParticipant @keithbeaumont45476]

I log in daily to see what is going on and apart from the fact that sometimes I have to have two goes at logging in before it opens, I am not getting any of the problems that others are getting. Speed varies at times, but not anywhere near what it was a few weeks ago. One thing I have not solved yet is with the Classifieds. I can see the “For sale”, but not the “Wanted”. Clicking on the big red buttons,with the number of entries, does nothing.

I am using a fast PC ,Win 10 and Firefox, All up to date. I accept all Cookies when I log in.   When I get a notification on my Samsung Android phone, I have no problems opening the thread with good speed. On the old Forum, that did not happen and I rarely used it to check on things.

Keith.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Keith try clicking the actual “Wanted” text not the red file icon

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

It is improving: it is now running more quickly and seems to have disconnected the “Forum[s]” buttons from “Log out”. It has also thankfully stopped using stroboscopic advertisements, and hopefully Warco’s aggressive gangsta-signing Santa will soon be back Far Up North.

Though it has a new trick: I need log in twice (3 buttons each time) for it to work.

There are still weaknesses, such as several “Forums” buttons where only one is necessary. Apart from the American plural, could this multiplicity be part of the problem?

However, different contributors report other effects between them, so I ask:

– How many of the problems really are due to poor internal design and construction?

– How many show incompatibility with instruments and OS? Do users so affected find similar problems on other web-sites and fora?

 

So a more general point:

– Microsoft has an almost complete monopoly. Despite or due to this, are the plethora of internet instruments, operating-systems and editions, and Microsoft’s constant tinkering with ‘Windows’, users’ data and attempts to quash rivals, leading to service fragmentation, greater incompatibility and unreliability, and lost files?

‘

MS “… tinkering with… users’ data”.

In Win 11 at least, the corner of the screen shows a weather indicator useful to those who think a real window not sufficiently “tech”. It opens a large panel of links to random news items plucked from the Press and broadcasters, with or without permission, many displayed in very childish ways.

One link though, is to your photos (and documents??) MS has placed in its “One Drive”. The selection is random, mixed up and sprinkled with dozens of irrelevant, unrecognisable images it has also found. Worse, it corrupts many photographs, on your own folders and on OneDrive. Of mine, it even deleted at least one complete folder, before I could find ways to back them up. (Microsoft 11 blocks my external hard-drives and their drivers, though USB “sticks” still work.)

MS does not ask your permission, does not tell you what it will copy, nor why. OneDrive is not properly accessible to you; hidden, so you cannot turn it off. Nor does MS say if placing your files, untitled, uncited and unsorted, on a news-headline display mean it has published them for its own purposes.

You can delete them, one at a time, but I do not know if this also deletes them from your own folders. Perhaps you can stop this interference only by an external drive and copying only the images you need, when you need them.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

… or do yourself a real favour, Keith

https://www.model-engineer.co.uk/forums/topic/is-improvement-work-on-this-forum-website-still-ongoing/page/3/#post-700670

… et seq.

MichaelG.

.

sorry for the discontinuity … I had not seen Nigel’s post

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Nigel, the login and upto date “latest” list can depend on how you look at things. I just logged out and then went straight to look at the list and it was upto date. I then closed this site on my browser and opened it again but this time latest was still showing 22nd Dec a sbeing the latest.

Cache being done at the server is likely to be the cause according to a few emails I have had from Members so not at the users end. Also why the backroom boys are writing odd bits of code to try and fix things at the Mortons end.

Had a PM on another forum this morning from a member who thought the site has closed as he could not log in and saw no activity since the 22nd. Hope the advertisers are going to get a refund as many people won’t be seeing what they have paid for.

This is what I see if I log right out

[KEITH BEAUMONTParticipant @keithbeaumont45476]

Jason, I am not seeing any “wanted” text. When I go to Classifieds,all I see are the “for sale” items, Where is the “Wanted” text?

Keith.

[KEITH BEAUMONTParticipant @keithbeaumont45476]

While waiting for someone to enlighten me, I have found out how to access “Wanted”items. The page has Photos of “for sale” items. but a grey button showing two Bell tents and the moon/sun for the “Wanted” items Click on one of those and “hey presto” you see an item for sale !   Are there any instructions for that sequence,that I have missed?

Keith

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Keith scroll to the bottom of the “classifieds” page some clever sole thought it would be good to put them there rather than at the top. 🙈

If you are using a phone then it is even further down than on a PC screen

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Forgive me if I appear paranoid … but I am beginning to wonder why everyone is ignoring my ‘better way’

MichaelG.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Keith the “bell tents” are because there is no image, as people want an item they are unlikely to be able to take a picture of it so leave that part of the form blank hence just the grey image icon rather than an actual image.

[KEITH BEAUMONTParticipant @keithbeaumont45476]

Jason, I have got it! The text you mention is on the red buttons!!!  it is an amazing coincidence that most of the entries without a photo, are Wanted items though.

Keith.

[KEITH BEAUMONT]

On KEITH BEAUMONT Said:

Jason, I have got it! The text you mention is on the red buttons!!!  it is an amazing coincidence that most of the entries without a photo, are Wanted items though.

Keith.

It is amazing, but how do you take a photograph of an item you want but don’t have🤔

Ian P

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi Nigel Graham 2, I don’t have any logging in issues with other sites that I visit, my “One Drive” is not active, and all my external drives work correctly without any interference from Microsoft, and I didn’t get the same logging in problems before the latest update, that I’m getting now. I’m having the same logging in problems on my phone as well now, which I didn’t have before, and that has no connection with Microsoft. Maybe you need to go into settings and check your privacy and permissions options, if you think Microsoft is spying on your computer.

Whenever I’m logged out, I see exactly the same as JasonB has shown, whenever I visit this site, and have done since the 22nd Dec.

Regards Nick.

[Ches Green UKParticipant @chesgreenuk]

It’s only today (27th Dec) that I see up-to-date posts, after log-in…that has not been the case for a few days. Not logging-in still only shows up to Dec 22nd.

I seem to recall that the change over was originally being measured in (a few) days… I suspect ‘months’ would now be more realistic.

Still got my fingers crossed the Morton’s team get to the end of the tunnel.

Ches

W10, FF, Intel, wired internet

 

[KEITH BEAUMONTParticipant @keithbeaumont45476]

Ian,

You are correct of course. It was my way of explaining how I had gone up the wrong route.

Keith

[Peter Greene]

On Peter Greene Said:

Hang in there Gray. The site is working more or less normally as-intended now for me (although I stick mostly to the forums and don’t roam around much). Like others I’m not a fan of the “new look” – though I distinctly remember discussions on the old site – before Morton’s time – about redoing the software and changing to a new, lighter “more modern” look comparable to other forum sites. The people that preferred the old look were portrayed then as “stick in the muds”.

I know a lot of people are still having technical issues but my experience says that it can work even in its current incarnation. It’s a matter, I think of the software’s sensitivity to different user setups.

For example, in your browser settings, are you flushing cookies and/or cache at browser shutdown?

The use of various devices for access also seems to run the gamut. I use a stock standard Windows desktop but I know some use i-whatevers and phones. Nothing would surprise me about an Android phone (personal opinion)!

Hello Peter,

I have tried the “hang in there”, I am starting to get tired of the whole procedure of logging in. I use a very large monitor for drawing work. Yet I still have to scroll down to activate the log-in box. After about the 3rd try my muscles start to have had enough of the repeated moves, so I just give up.

I don’t see the necessity to log-in just to see the latest replies. I could of course just stay logged-in but given this sites track record I err on the side of caution and log-out.

I do however thank you for your words of encouragement and I am not trying to knock yours or others suggestions.

Gray,

As regards clearing my cookies. I have my computer set such that sites have to ask for my OK for cookies. Personally I find they do little to the “Experience” on any site. As regards the adverts that are generated form cookies they are wasted on me. I have yet to buy any item based on an advert. If I am in the market for an item I search for such things and buy what I want. At nearly 72 that is now second-hand purchases. Usually they of better quality than I can buy new today.

Regards

Gray,

 

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Gray, I have always stayed logged in but since the 22nd update have found myself logged out every morning when I first turn on the computer. Like you several tries needed to get logged in.

Also I rarely got logged out of the old system unlike others who seemed to have a problem but at least you could get back in on the first attempt.

[Graham MeekParticipant @grahammeek88282]

Hi Jason,

It is funny you should say that because I did stay logged in overnight Christmas Eve into Christmas Day by way of an experiment. I was still logged in on Christmas morning. Thus it seems the site has a mind of its own, as it is not consistent even with this.

I did get the better of logging in again now. Logged in, got the Log-in request, did a refresh, to which I had to click “continue” on the caption box which dropped down. Logged in again and hey-presto I was in. Still needed to do a refresh for every navigation on the site to get here.

Regards

Gray,

[Peter Greene]

On Peter Greene Said:

On Ian P Said:

…. or clear the cache, or try a different browser but it is all irrelevant as none of those fixes are needed for other websites.

And yet Firefox, and probably most other browsers, while allowing you to configure to flush cache and cookies on exit also allow you to create exceptions for specific sites. Which seems to suggest that the need to retain certain personal settings is not uncommon and is probably necessary for some sites. For example, how else would you stay logged in here if you delete the login cookie after every session (same for the old site).

That is a good point Peter (that browsers allow settings for specific sites) it’s just that in my years of internet use I have never had to adjust any setting to cope with different websites, until this one came along!

Ian P

[TomfileryParticipant @tomfilery]

A new one on me!  The “latest replies” list was only showing replies up to the 22 or 23 Dec – I had thought it most unlikely that no one had posted anything in the last few days.  I logged in (and refreshed) but still the list stays as per 4 days ago.  Even though the “What did you do today” thread had some replies today, the list didn’t show that they would be there.

However, just to prove me wrong, when I scrolled to the bottom of this page (to check that “latest Replies” was the correct description) the list now shows various replies for today.  There must be a cache issue with the site.

Am using Ubuntu 22.04 via Firefox.

Regards Tom

[Kiwi BlokeParticipant @kiwibloke62605]

Praise where praise is due – this site has been entirely advert-free for me, since its reincarnation. I use fairly basic ad-blocker and script-blocker, etc. methods. I’d better not reveal details, though…

[Ian PParticipant @ianp]

BUMP (the question in the title) to see if anyone from Mortons still cares about what the participants would like to see on the forum.

Prompted by recent post in the ‘Comments, constructive etc’ thread

Ian P

[Author]

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